People in America: My Uncle Don Quixote

After a few tenths of a second, the broadcast footage switched to the largest close-up shot of the entire event, projecting it onto the giant dome screen.

"Oh! Look where we found him!" Joe Buck's voice held a hint of sarcasm. "He wasn't in the VIP box! He was sitting in row 15 of the lower stands!"

On the big screen, Florida Governor Ronald DeSantis is wearing a Tampa Bay Buccaneers jersey and holding a half-eaten stadium hot dog.

When he saw the camera pointed at him, he tilted his head, shrugged, took a big bite of his hot dog, and then confidently showed off his Tampa Bay Buccaneers jersey to the camera.

"Let's be pirates!" he yelled at the camera.

"This was truly a brilliant PR stunt," Kim Ha-eun said, typing rapidly on her computer. "I'm going to write this down in case I need it someday."

She was sitting on the edge of a large sofa, with a huge floor-to-ceiling window to her right.

Through the glass, one can clearly see the entire stadium and more than 60,000 spectators. From their perspective, the athletes on the field look as tiny as ants.

This is the away team's VIP box. Don Quixote has just come out of the locker room, changed into a smart suit, while Chen Haisheng is sitting near the door of the box.

Upon seeing Don Quixote emerge, Kim Ho-eun immediately stood up from the sofa and loudly reported to Don Quixote:

"Mr. Don Quixote," she said, "I'm monitoring Twitter activity and Google's trending topics, and so far everything is normal, in line with the pace of the game's start and our expectations!"

"Hmm," Don Quixote said, adjusting his cufflinks in front of the mirror. "Well done."

"It's what I should do," Kim Ha-eun said loudly, then sat down again.

She picked up the nearly empty large iced Americano, glanced at Don Quixote, carefully lifted the lid, pulled out the straw, and took a sip directly from the rim of the cup.

This way, the straw won't make any noise.

Looking at Kim Ha-eun in the distance, Chen Haisheng suddenly felt that he should have stood up just now, at least to compliment Don Quixote on his good looks or something.

"Mr. Don Quixote," he stood up and began, "you...you..."

He suddenly felt a little embarrassed as he was about to say it; praising his boss for being handsome seemed a bit too gay.

Don Quixote glanced at Chen Haisheng with some surprise.

Just then, a sharp whistle rang out from the large screen broadcasting in the VIP box.

Then, below the VIP box, the roar of more than 60,000 audience members erupted, the deafening roar soaring into the sky.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' special operations kicker delivered a powerful kickoff, sending the rugby ball soaring high through the air towards the Giants' end zone.

"The match has begun," Chen Haisheng said quickly, then sat down again.

"Thank you for telling me this," Don Quixote nodded, then turned to Kim Ho-eun, "Have they arrived?"

"They replied five minutes ago that I had arrived in the next private room," Kim Ha-eun said quickly. "They should be here at any moment."

"Very good," Don Quixote nodded. "Nervous? This is the first commercial endorsement offer you've received."

Kim Ha-eun gave a sweet smile and pressed down on her trembling legs.

"I'm not nervous," she said. "I'm ready."

"I really need to go to the toilet," she thought.

After she took office as a public relations intern, a smart sports watch company called Apex Dynamics approached her, wanting to make initial contact with Li Wei's team.

What frustrated Kim Ha-eun was that they were slow to make progress and did not request a meeting until last week when public opinion against Lee Wei reversed.

After the public opinion reversed, they even flew to Florida immediately to ask to meet with her and Don Quixote in order to finalize a collaboration.

This is the first collaboration she has secured on her own. If successful, she will receive 1% of the contract fee, while Don Quixote, as her leader, will receive 3% of the total.

For endorsement deals that often start at millions of dollars, even 1% is an astronomical sum for Kim Ha-eun. This is the largest sum of money she has received besides her scholarship.

Given her family's financial situation, she wouldn't have been able to afford university without a scholarship.

Just then, the door to the private room was gently pushed open.

Led by the waiter, three white men in suits and wearing visitor badges on their chests walked over.

The person walking at the front was wearing a highly recognizable carbon fiber smart sports watch on his wrist. Kim Ha-eun recognized him; he was the Executive Vice President of the North American region for the sports watch that was part of this collaboration.

Kim Ha-eun took a deep breath, closed her laptop, stood up, and stood behind Don Quixote.

"Come on, Xiao Jin," she told herself.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Don Quixote," the vice president in the lead extended his hand, "This is going to be a big event, I hope we haven't disturbed your enjoyment of the match."

"Of course not, Mr. Martin," Don Quixote shook hands with the other man, "my time is not as valuable as the time I represent for my clients."

"After all," he shrugged, "he can earn millions of dollars from just one match, right?"

Upon hearing this, Martin and his two assistants exchanged a glance and sat down.

Kim Ho-eun also sat down next to Don Quixote.

Welcome to the fantastical world of fantasy novels. The entrance is here:

"Let's get straight to the point, Mr. Don Quixote."

As soon as Martin sat down, he pulled a meticulously bound document from his elegant briefcase and gently pushed it to about two-thirds of the way down the glass coffee table.

Don Quixote suddenly raised an eyebrow.

"Apex Dynamics highly values ​​Mr. Levi's recent explosive performance on the field and is willing to offer him a five-year, $500 million annual global endorsement contract." Martin crossed his arms and leaned slightly forward. "This is an unprecedented guarantee for a rookie quarterback. We've brought our full sincerity."

Don Quixote glanced at the side of the document, then at Martin.

He casually raised his chin, gesturing to Kim Ha-eun beside him: "Kim, tell them what we think."

What do I think? I can get 500 US dollars out of that 25 million, which is enough for my annual salary.

Being suddenly called upon, Kim Ha-eun's mind went blank for a quarter of a second, but her four years of university life and nearly a month of studying at the exam prep center hadn't been in vain. She quickly opened her laptop and spoke rapidly:

"Uh, Mr. Martin, cough cough cough umm," she cleared her throat, "this offer doesn't match Mr. Levi's current true commercial potential. According to our and the Giants' current data monitoring, since the charity event last week, Levi's public image has undergone a complete reversal. He is—"

"Ms. Kim, right?" Martin interrupted her rather forcefully. "Didn't we communicate online before?"

Kim Ha-eun smiled slightly, keeping her hands on her casual trousers as she tried to calm her legs.

"The social media frenzy is one thing, but the real business logic is another," Martin said. "The NFL has the highest injury rate in the country. If Mr. Levi were a baseball player like Shohei Ohtani, we could offer a higher price. But if he suffered a devastating injury on the field tomorrow, our investment in him would be completely wasted. By offering a long-term contract, we are taking on a huge premium risk for you."

Kim Heon paused for a moment, then continued reciting fluently the records of Li Wei's forceful dribbling and knocking down Dallas Cowboys players.

The other party remained tight-lipped, and the situation reached a stalemate.

Don Quixote suddenly spoke up, "Gentlemen, since we can't come up with an answer right now, why don't we watch the game for a while?"

Martin and his two assistants frowned, then patiently turned to look at the large screen.

On the field, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' defense surged towards the Giants' frontline like a red tsunami. It was an extremely dangerous all-out attack, with two defensive ends, each weighing over 280 pounds, tearing through the protective shield and fiercely double-teaming Levi from both sides.

"Danger! The Pirates' defensive line has completely breached the Giants' defense!" Commentator Joe Buck's voice echoed in the box.

Kim Ha-eun clenched her fists nervously.

Just as the two giant beasts were about to crush Li Wei, the blue figure number 1 on the screen suddenly lowered his head and squeezed out from between the two.

Immediately afterwards, facing the strong guard who came to cover, Li Wei did not choose to slide to dodge, but instead brutally rammed into him with his shoulder!

"Bang!"

Even through the bulletproof glass, those in the VIP box could almost hear the muffled thuds of flesh colliding. The strong defender was sent flying like a sandbag hit by a heavy truck, while Levi's speed didn't diminish at all. He tore a bloody path through the crimson defense, sprinting forty yards, and calmly smashed the ball into the end zone with one hand!

"Touchdown!!!!"

Joe Buck's roar, accompanied by the frenzied shouts of more than 60,000 spectators, swept through the entire stadium like a tangible tsunami.

"The Mets' King, the NFL's God, has once again reigned supreme on the road! He is unstoppable!"

"YES!"

Kim Ha-eun suddenly clenched her fist and gave a small cheer.

Then she quickly realized that they were in the middle of negotiations. She immediately glanced around at the people present and secretly breathed a sigh of relief when she found that she wasn't the only one watching the big screen.

"How was it?" Don Quixote suddenly interrupted Martin, who was engrossed in the performance, and poured them both a glass of whiskey. "Wasn't it very entertaining?"

Martin, having just recovered from Levi's astonishing 40-yard touchdown, smiled somewhat awkwardly at Don Quixote's teasing question:

"Since you're worried about his health, you can sign a shorter contract," Don Quixote waved his hand, "but this $500 million is really too much of a bargain."

"Mr. Don Quixote, we—"

"I'm not finished yet, Mr. Martin," Don Quixote narrowed his eyes, "If you don't even have this much patience, then please leave now."

Wow... Kim Ha-eun looked at Don Quixote, who exuded an imposing aura without anger and instantly suppressed Martin, and for a moment she began to dream of when she could become such a person.

Martin was interrupted by Don Quixote, and a hint of impatience flashed across his face, but he quickly suppressed it.

"I did not mean to offend you, Mr. Martin."

Don Quixote put down his wine glass, leaned back slightly, and sank into the expensive leather armchair.

He didn't rush to discuss the contract, but instead, as if having a casual conversation, stared intently at Martin's slightly tense face:

"Judging from your style, you must have spent some time on Wall Street, right? Which firm?"